Hand slicer



June 22, 1948.

Filed Sept. 23, 1944 D. A. PASSARELL] HAND SLICER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 June1 948. D. A. PASSARELLI 2,443,928

HAND SLICER Filed Sept. 25, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented June 22, 1948UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HAND SLICER Dominick A. Passarelli'.Danbulty, C

Application September 23, 1944, Serial, No. 555,530.

8: Claims.

materials, such for example as cheese, [butter and the like, although itis not limitedto slicing such materials but may be used for slicingvarious other materials such as bread, meat and the like.

It has for an object to provide an improved slicing device which willmake clean slices in slicing such soft material as cheeses and the likeand in such a way as to prevent the material clinging to the knife.

Another object is to provide a simple and effective arrangement wherebythe cutter or knife is a thin, flexible blade mounted so that in theslicing operation it is drawn longitudinally through the material to besliced and at the same time is moved laterally or at right angles tothis movement through the material.

With the foregoing and. otherobjects in view I have devised theconstruction illustrated in the accompanying drawing forming a part ofthis specification, the showing being somewhat diagrammatical. It is,however, to be understood the invention is not limited to the specificconstruction and arrangement shown, but mayembody various changes andmodifications 'within the scope of the invention.

In these drawings:

Fig. 1 is a vertical transverse section through the device;

Fig. 2 is a detailed section substantiall on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1,but on a larger scale;

Fig. 3 is a section substantially on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a section substantially on the line 4--4 of Fig. 3; r

Fig. 5 is a detailed section substantially on the line 5-5 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 6 is a transverse section through one form of blade which may beused, the shape of the blade being, however, exaggerated,

Fig. 7 is a side view of the device looking from the right of Fig. 1,and

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the casing enclosing the blade wind-up means,the guide for the casing and the threaded rod being shown in section.

In slicing various articles, such for example as soft cheeses and thelike, it is very diificult to make clean slices and to prevent thematerial clinging to the knife or cutter. Even the fine wire cutters nowgenerally employed are not satisfactory. In the present device I havegreatly reduoed these difficulties by using a thin, narrow, flexibleblade or cutter and mounting it so that it will simultaneously have twodifferent movements through the material, One being a. move-l ment,transversely of the material and longitudinally of the blade, and theother a movement laterally through the: material in the plane of theblade and at substantially right angles to the first movement. Thesecombined simultaneous movements have been found to give a much cleanerout with less liability of the material clinging to the blade, and makeit possible to secure clean, thin slices even of soft material such ascheese and the like.

It will be understood the device may comprise various constructions andarrangements, the showing in the drawing being somewhat diagrammatical,and the device is not limited to the 1.5 specific; construction andarrangement shown.

The, device illustrated comprises a frame or base Hi which is. aslidable support or platform II to carry a loaf or block [2 of cheese,butter, bread or any material which is tobe sliced, the platform Itbeing guided for sliding feeding movements in suitable guides l3, and itpreferably has an upstanding flange M at one. end to hold the unaterial[2 in place. Means is provided for giving a feeding movement between thematerial 12 and the cutting knife. In the device illustrated theplatform H and the material I2 is fed forwardly in, a step-by-stepmovement to permit cutting of successive slices from the material I2 andat the proper thickness. Various feedin mechanism may be used. Thatshown comprises a rack 15 secured to the platform ll meshing with asmall pinion 16- on a transverseshaft l1. Mounted on this shaft is aratchet I8 which may be given partial successive rotation by means of apawl 19 pivoted on a reciprocating rod 20 mounted in a suitable bracket20a. It may be operated by a push button 2| with a spring 22 tending toreturn the push button and the pawl to their normal position. Anadjustable stop 23 may be pro- 40 vided to determine the downwardmovement of the push rod and the pawl and thus adjust the feedingmovement of the platform It and determine thethickness of the slices cutfrom the block or loaf I2.

Forcheese and similar materials, the cutter preferred comprises aflexible, thin, narrow blade 24. This may be flat, but for these softmaterials it may be slightly curved transversely so as to beconcavo-convex, as shown in Fig. 6. It is preferably similar to a steelhairspring, with a razor edge 25 on its lower or cutting edge, or ifpreferred, for certain materials it could be a toothed edge. It may beof different widths depending on the material to be cut, but for cheeseand similar material it is preferablyof the order of. about T g inchwide and verythin. This thin flexible blade is connected at one end to amember 26 which is mounted so as to rotate to wind and unwind theflexible blade on and from it, and at the same time to move laterally,in the present case vertically up and down, so that the flexible bladehas two simultaneous movements. In the present arrangement the member 26is a sort of nut or drum on which the blade 24 may be wound, as shown,and it also has threaded engagement with an upright threaded rod orscrew 21. This rod has threads of a relatively long pitch so that as themember 26 rotates it will move longitudinally up and down. The threadsmay be of thetype used in the well known Yankee drills in which a rodprovided with a long pitch spiral groove and carrying the drill chuck isdriven by reciprocating a nut threaded on the rod. This rod has anoncircular or squar lower end 28 mounted in a similarly shaped recessin the base Ill so that therod 21 is held against turning movement.

' The nut or member 26 is mounted in a casing 29 with a coil spring 35connected at one end to the member 26, as shown at 3|, and at the otherend 32 to the casing. The connection to the member 26 is preferably adetachable connection so that members 26 carrying difierent sizes orwidths of cutters may be used, the connection shown being that of a studor pin 3| seating in a recess in the member 26. The casing 29 isslidable along the rod 21 but isheld against turning movements on thisrod by means of a lateral extension 33 embracing an upright guide 34also mounted on the base l0. Mounted on the base if! at the oppositeside of the platform l l'is a similar guide rod 35, andboth of theserods have one or more guide slots 36 and 31 extending transverselytherethrough and throughout the lengths of the rod forming a guide forthe blade or flexible cutter 24, as shown in Fig. 2. The slots may be ofdifferent widths to correspond with different thicknesses of cutters orblades 24, the blades being closely guided by these guide slots,although having free movement therein, so that the blade is heldstraight and is prevented from moving out of its proper plane during theslicing operation, and thus permitting the cutting of thin clean slices.The free end of the cutter or blade 24 is connected to a knob or handle38 at t-he outer side of the guide 35 which constitutes the means foroperating the cutter during the slicing operation. Preferably the upperends of the rods 21, 34 and '35 are connected by a horizontal rod 39 tohelp maintain them in the proper relation.

The operation is as follows:

The spring 30 is always tensioned and tends to rotate the member 26 soasto wind the flexible blade or cutter 24 thereon, the windingmovement,=

tudinally across the material [2 to be out. At the same time-it unwindsthis flexible blade from the member or nut 26, thus rotating thismember, and as it is threaded on the threaded rod 21 this rotation willcause the member 26 and the casing 29 to move downwardly, as alsoindicated'in dotted lines, to at the same time carry the cutter or blade24 downwardly through the material l2 in a direction laterally or atsubstantially right angles to its longitudinal movement and. in theplane of the blade. Rotation of the member 26 at the same time winds upor still further tensions the spring 30 as it is connected at its innerend to the member 26 and at its outer end to the casing 29, which isheld against turning by the guide lug 33. Therefore, as thepull isagainst the spring the flexible blade is always held straight and taut.Also when pull on the handle "in the opposite direction to again wind orcoil connection with the rod 27 will shift it and the i bladetogetherwith the casing upwardly to its norrnalor full line position in Fig. 1,ready to take another cut.

theflexible blade on it, and as this rotates the member 26 in theopposite direction its threaded The operator then by depressing the pushrod 2| and the pawl I9 will feed the table II and the material I 2forwardly the proper distance for the next cut. During the cuttingoperation the flexible knife or blade 24 is guided and kept straight bythe guides 34 and 35 and by the pull against the spring .30, so as toprevent its buckling and to keep it in the proper plane during thecutting operation.

-.It -will be seen from the above that the thin, narrow, flexible bladeduring the cutting operation has combined longitudinal and downwardsliding movement, and this prevents material sticking to it'and gives aclean smooth cut, even with soft material. The slight lateral curvatureindicated-in Fig. 6 also helps to prevent sticking of the material tothe blade as it'reduces the amount of surface actually in contact withthe material being cut. It is of course, however, to be' understood thedevice is not limited to use for cutting such materials, but it is alsovery successful for cutting other materials such as meat, bread and thelike.

Having thus set forth the nature of my invention, what I claim is:

'1. In .a device of the character described, a support for a block ofmaterial to be sliced, a thin flexible blade, a support on which theblade is Wound, means for drawing the blade longitudinally across theblock to cut it, and means cooperating with the blade support to at thesame time bodily shift this support in a direction laterally to thesupport l-forthe block to more the blade laterally through the block.

2. In a slicer of the character described, a base, a support for a blockof material to be sliced, a thin flexible blade, a member on which theblade is wound, a spring tending to Wind the blade on said member, anupright support for said member, means for drawing the blade from saidmember and across the block, cooperating means on the upright supportand the member to at the same time move the member and blade down-Wardly relative to the support for the block, and means for causing astep by step relative feeding movement'between the blade and the supportfor the-block. I

3. In a slicer ofthe character described, a sup port for a blockofmaterial to be sliced, a thin flexible blade, a member on which theblade may be wound, a spring tending to wind the blade on said member,means for drawing the blade longitudinally across the block to cut it,and means for at the same time shifting the member transversely in theplane of the blade to carry the blade laterally through the block.

4. In a slicer of the character described, a support for the material tobe sliced, a threaded rod, a member threaded on the rod, a thin flexibleblade wound on said member, a grip secured to the blade for unwinding itfrom the member and drawing it across the material and rotating saidmember so that the threaded connection with the rod shifts it and theblade in a direction longitudinally of the rod, and means tending torotate the member in the opposite direction.

5. In a slicer of the character described, a support for the material tobe sliced, an upright threaded rod, a member threaded on the rod, a thinflexible blade wound on said member, means tending to turn said memberto wind the blade thereon, upright spaced guides on opposite sides ofsaid support having transverse guide slots for the blade, a grip on theblade for drawing it through said guides and to unwind it from saidmember, and means for causing a step by step relative feeding movementbetween the blade and the support for said material.

6. In a slicer of the character described, a base, a support formaterial to be sliced mounted for sliding movement on the base, anupright threaded rod at one side of said support, a thin flexible blade,a mount for the blade having threaded connection with the rod, a springtending to turn said blade mount in one direction to wind the bladethereon and shift the blade and said: mount upwardly on the rod, uprightguides for the blade on opposite sides of the material support, a gripon the blade for drawing it through said guides across the material andunwind it from said mount to turn the mount and shift the bladedownwardly, and means for feeding the support transversely of the bladewith a step by step movement.

7. In a slicer of the character described, a support for material to besliced, an upright threaded rod, a rotatable member having threadedengagement with the rod, a thin flexible blade connected to said member,means tending to rotate said member in one direction to wind the bladethereon and to shift said member and blade upwardly on the rod, andmeans for pulling the blade to unwind it from the member and draw itacross the material to be sliced, said unwinding operation also rotatingthe member in the opposite direction to shift the member and bladedownwardly.

8. In a slicer of the character described, a support for the material tobe sliced, a threaded upright rod, a rotatable member threaded on therod, a thin flexible blade connected to said mam her, a casing enclosingsaid member, a spring in the casing comiected to the casing and saidmemher and tending to rotate the member in a direction to wind the bladethereon and shift the easing and blade upwardly on the rod, uprightguides for the blade on opposite sides of said material support, meansslidably connecting the casing with one of said guides to preventturning of the casing, and means for drawing the blade through theguides across the material to be sliced and to unwind the blade fromsaid member and at the same time rotate said member in the oppositedirection to shift the blade downwardly.

DOMINICK A. PASSARELLI.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

